I was foolish enough to fall for the ads in the flight magazines. ITS JUST LUNCH, IRVINE. But I thought, let's give it a try. Expensive? Yes, but I was led to believe the matching process was their core competency, much better than shooting the dice with online dating services. To begin with the crew at the Irvine location all go to the same school for 'phone talk'. They are very artificial and have an extremely annoying sing song tone. After going on 4 really bad dates where I had absolutely nothing in common with the dates, I submitted a complaint. The directory called me back, and swore she would manage my file, only to send me the same caliber and worse. They don't tell you up front that the ratio of men to women is very high.
They assure you 14 dates within one year, and I can't wait for this nightmare to end. The associates misrepresent the matches, and tell the date things about yourself that are outdated or downright wrong. DO NOT fall for this service. It is a rip off of $1900, where the buyers remorse continues to haunt me. IF after reading all of these reviews you still think they can do you right, then do it by a secure credit card, and one that backs up your purchases, only make sure you file the complaint within 90 days of signing up. THIS IS A FRAUDULENT ORGANIZATION. I really think some of the dates are plants, men who are paid to go out on dates through the organization. All of the men seem to really like the service. As you can read from the other reviews, few women think the same. Let the buyer beware.

I paid $1,300 for my membership based on the premise that I would receive over 14 "quality" dates during a 12 month span. A year later, I had only received 5 dates despite voicing frequent concerns to their staff.

Over the course of my membership, the staff gave me several excuses in efforts to justify why I only received 5 dates:

1) It was an oversight by their staff
2) Not enough staff to properly service their clients
3) Recognized they did a bad job but "they're trying to do better".

In addition, I was twice matched with someone of an ethnicty that was not listed on my profile, yet IJL attempted to charge these dates as part of my contract.

If you are a current client of theirs be persistent and fight for a refund as I did receive a pro-rate refund despite their statements they do not give money back.

Their company should be renamed "It's just awful" service.

Note - a good friend of mine was a client of "Table for Six", a major competitor of theirs in the LA / OC area and he has informed me their service is just as bad. Don't go with either company.

Greetings all,

Sounds like a great idea, and it could be a good service but the Newport "It's just lunch" does not have the team and service. My experience is this is the worst thing I have ever done in my life, They will promise you that they will be in contact with you and work for your matches. Honestly once they receive your money ($1500) they do not contact you and always drop the ball with reservations and providing any service. They will constantly move you around with different people and nobody will ever know who you are. If you are dissatisfied, they will give you the "We will personally manage your file" speech but it is an empty promise. Once you realize that the service is a big issue - they will not reimburse you or work with you - and worstly they will throw in your face - "You signed the contract" you cannot do anything speech. This comes from "Lisa" lead director -. Well I will file a complaint with my credit card and Consumer protection agency.

I do believe this could be a good service, I have heard good statements from people outside this branch. Personally everyone I have talked to on my dates all are dissatisfied with Newport Beach IJL. Please save your money and try elsewhere.

Promised great things and seems like a great concept, unless of course you actually expect "experienced matchmakers", "attention to detail", "thoughtful matches", and "fine tuning in dating preferences". :-(

Some employees are very nice although there seemed to be a bit of turn over during the period I was there. Some of the newer employees seemed to not do what they said (ie - return phone calls, call to confirm dates, address concerns, forward messages, etc... I actually ended up alone at a restaurant waiting for 45 minutes and I have an inkling it had something to do with the "miscommunication" between my coordinator and the other party).

If you decide to pay up the $1300 or $1500 for the year of service then be sure to stay in close contact because you may find that you've fallen off of their radar and may not hear from a date coordinator for a couple of months at a time (that was my experience).

They did respond quickly when I forwarded a complaint to a consumer protection agency and eventually provided a partial refund. Save your money and get involved in activities you enjoy - Seems like better odds of meeting someone interesting!